


Always Never The Same

by orphan_account



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Gen, I just really wanted Gabriel back okay?, Post-Season/Series 08 Finale, Well - Freeform, and charlie is there because I just love her okay?, btw sam got "better" alright?, but not, but not the one you know, it tries to become that, shhhhh just accept it, will be going into 2014!verse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-07-05
Updated: 2013-08-18
Packaged: 2017-12-17 19:31:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,896
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/871187
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gabriel is back to help the Winchesters fight against Metatron, but after a spell-gone-wrong, more familiar faces are brought back to the boys, specifically one with an old grudge against Dean.  With dozens of fallen angels to take care of, and the threat of the Apocalypse being rebooted, Dean and Sam feel in over their heads, forced to make deals with enemies, risk their friends' lives, and finally come face-to-face again with the Scribe behind it all.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue - The Sky Is Falling

There was a light show behind his eyelids, and he didn’t want it to end. It wasn’t particularly amazing, and it wasn’t very comforting, but it was better than the other option. If he opened his eyes now he would see it. What the news station on his radio was announcing was a freak meteor shower, but they weren’t in on it, and they wouldn’t believe it if they were.  
Those were his brothers and sisters, the shooting stars in the sky.  
And he didn’t want to see them fall.  
One by one the quiet voices in his head tapered off, from screams of “HELP!” and “Dad fucking dammit!” to “why...” and “no, please.” He hadn’t listened to the angel radio signal in years, not since he went into hiding, but tonight he would miss it sorely, because he knew now, the option of turning it on was no longer there. Gabriel was entirely, impossibly, alone.

The next week would be one of tests. How much power did he have? Could he fly? Make things appear? How long did he have before heaven would shut down entirely? By Friday afternoon, Gabriel was sure he was at full strength (for now). The only thing he couldn’t do was make the trip upstairs. Not that he wanted to do that, entirely. He left that scene behind centuries ago, and last time he came running back in to save the day, well, look where that had gotten him: a cabin in the middle of the woods in Dad-only-knows where, living off whatever he conjured up, but essentially alone. Not a douchebag in sight to mess with. Three years he had lived like this, courtesy of the Winchesters. Sure, they shoved the Devil back in the box and both made it out alive, but obviously the party didn’t stop there. Whatever cleaned up upstairs was still out there, and either it was celebrating a victory, or just getting started. Those boys wouldn’t know what was coming for them.

“You’re starting to make a habit out of this.” 

Gabriel said to himself, leaning back in his chair. “These are your siblings; it’s not about those plaid-wrapped boneheads.” 

Great. Looks like it doesn’t take a Winchester to guilt you into doing the right thing. The archangel rolled his eyes internally, sighed, and snapped his fingers. 

*

Sam was pouring over a thick volume of ancient diaries. Dean had found the War and Peace sized tome in one of the many supply closets the Men of Letters had installed. This one must’ve been a favourite because most of the pages were dog-eared and highlighted on. Sam yawned, thinking about some kid getting his ass kicked for writing in a book from the 1400s. He glanced at the clock, which glowed 2:00 AM. Across the table, Kevin was out cold, chin rested against his arms. Charlie was in an armchair a little ways away, and Sam could tell by the steady breathing that she too, was asleep. He was just considering a nap himself, when the radio crackled to life. Sam looked over at it, in part hoping his glare would make it shut off. Resigning that idea, he uncrossed his legs and pushed himself up. A little off balance from having not moved in so long, he leaned momentarily against the table before shuffling over to the little clock radio. It was still crackling. Sam pressed the off button. Crackle, crackle. Click. It wouldn’t turn off. Sam sighed and yanked on the plug. Crackle. More awake now, he reached over the table to where his gun was sitting, fully loaded with rock salt. Crackle. Moving slowly, Sam readied himself to shoot at whatever ghost or demon was doing this. Only, nothing showed itself, and as the radio continued to crackle, Sam looked around. No flickering lights and he didn’t feel cold. So what the hell was...?

The crackling stopped. Sam’s head snapped back to the clock radio, and he could see the dial spinning, tuning it to a station. To his horror, when the dial stopped, an all too familiar voice blared out of the speaker. In the background, Sam heard Kevin groan, but it was only noise now that his ears had tuned out everything but that song:

You can concern yourself with bigger things  
You catch a pearl and ride the dragon's wings

'Cause it's the heat of the moment  
The heat of the moment  
The heat of the moment showed in your eyes

Without thinking, Sam shot the radio. 

The song tapered off, and he breathed a sigh of relief. Only a moment’s reprieve, though, because there was a sudden flutter, like that of wings, and when Sam turned on his heel, gun at the ready, he was not prepared for what he saw. The man in front of him merely raised an eyebrow, tossed a bit of brown hair away from his golden eyes, and smiled

“Did’ja miss me, kiddo?”


	2. Preamble

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Although Gabriel seems to have some sort of plan formed, some members of the team are much less trusting of the Trickster than others. Tensions start to rise, and Dean also starts to realize just how much he misses his old friend.

The sound of Sam’s gunshot had roused the company, Kevin standing next to the chair he had knocked over in his haste to take cover, and Charlie standing at the ready with what seemed to be a replica Ochrist sword. Dean, who had been in his room, was last to enter the scene, .45 in his hand. When he reached the open space and saw everyone standing entirely still, he let his guard drop slightly. 

“What the...” Slack-jawed, confusion clear on his face, Dean stared at the man across from him. 

“Yeah, I know.” Sam turned to meet his brother’s gaze, confusion reflected in his own face.

“No, seriously dude, what the hell?” Dean wasn’t in the mood for this. Angels were falling; Cas was missing, and now what? A trickster look-alike on top of all that? No, not in the mood at all.

“Um, guys?” The three men’s staring contest was interrupted by Charlie, sword still up, warily pointed at Gabriel, “Do you... know this guy?”

Gabriel took a step towards Charlie, and she tensed up at his movement. “Know them?” He sighed exasperatedly: “these two muttonheads got me killed!”

This time it was Kevin’s turn to interrupt – “killed?”

“Well, not really. But I would’ve, if I wasn’t clever as I am.” It took a while to catch up the newer recruits on Gabriel’s backstory, and by the time Sam, Dean, and the trickster were done cutting each other off to get their versions of the story straight, Gabriel had conjured up coffee that Charlie sipped at, if not glancing over at him a few times too many. Sam let the cup in front of him cool entirely and even then only stared at it suspiciously, as if taking a sip would trap him in another round of eternal Tuesdays.

“Cheer up, Sammy. I’m here to help.” Gabriel smiled at the man sitting furthest away from him, and didn’t let it falter even when his bright eyes were met with Sam’s glare. “If looks could kill...” Gabriel said dryly. 

“Here to help, great. But how the hell are you alive? Let alone here.” Dean hadn’t touched his coffee either, even though he trusted Gabriel more than his brother. The guy had earned that, he thought.

“I told you, Dad was in on it. Messenger of God and all, I had a bit more direct contact than Cassie.”

“He means, how did you not fall?” Sam clarified, patience wearing thin.

Gabriel shrugged. “Haven’t been upstairs in a while, guess they never counted me. Now do you want my help, or do you want to keep playing 20 questions, because I’ve got-“  
BANG. Sam’s hand hit the table, hard. Gabriel saw Kevin flinch at the sound as he looked up to see the taller of the two Winchesters standing. “You said you were here to help so why don’t you quit screwing around and-“

Sam felt a hand press down on his shoulder, and let out a resigned sigh as he let Dean lead him out of the room.

“What’s got his panties in a bunch?” Gabriel leaned back in his chair and put his arms behind his head. Charlie could only bring herself to shrug in reply.

*

In one of the small bedrooms off the main hallway, Sam was sitting in a wooden backed chair pressed up against the bare wall that Dean was leaning on next to him.

“I don’t get it man. Back when we were trying to ice the devil, you were ready to sign the Trickster up to our army. Now he comes willingly and you gotta go all Bruce Banner on him?"

Sam looked up at his brother and raised his eyebrows. “Well what about you? You’re just ready to trust him?"

“He did put his life on the line for us Sammy. I think he’s earned a little trust. Especially if he can help us find Cas.”

“He’s not going to be able to find him any faster than we are. Cas is human, remember? We can’t exactly track the guy. Besides-“

“You think I don’t realise that, Sammy? I get it. But this isn’t about Cas anymore. I’ve lost him before and I got over it-“

“But I don’t think you can-“

“DAMN IT SAM. “ Dean’s fist flew out, and plaster rained down into Sam’s hair. When he pulled his hand back, he saw that it was cut open and bleeding. He balled it into a fist and shoved it in his pocket.. “I lost my best friend out there, again. And if Gabriel has even a snowball’s chance of getting him back, I gotta trust him.”

Sam stood abruptly, and brushed past Dean as he left the bedroom. “Fine. Trust him. But the moment he screws with any of us, I’ll kill him myself.”

Dean didn’t know how to reply. For now, convincing Sam to play even relatively nice was a victory.

*

Outside in the main room, the team’s mood relaxed slightly in seeing Sam come back seeming more collected than he had been when he left last. Dean followed in moments after, fist clenched and took a seat across from Gabriel, whose eyes hadn’t moved off Sam since he re-entered. His gaze slid over to Dean when he put his bloodied up hand on the table and turned to Kevin. 

“Get the first aid kit.” He grunted.

“Allow me.” Before Kevin could stand, Gabriel had snapped his fingers and Dean’s hand healed entirely. It didn’t even sting. For a brief second, Dean felt the ghost of Castiel’s hand pressed against his cheek just as it had the last time Cas had healed him. Dean put his newly healed hand to his cheek involuntarily. No one noticed the small movement, and Dean brushed off the feeling, looking back to Gabriel.

“So what’s the word? What do you know?"

Gabriel uncrossed his arms and leaned forward. “I know every angel that was sitting around up in heaven got their ass booted to the ground.”

Dean could have sworn he heard Sam mutter something akin to “no shit, Sherlock.”

“Quiet down, Sammy, I’m telling a story over here.” Gabriel looked over at Sam again before addressing the entire room again. “And I’ve still got my angel mojo because I was already down here. Once I ditched way back when, they were pretty quick to count me out. But-“He held up an index finger “-there were other angels who weren’t in Heaven when Metatron worked that spell.”

“Yeah, and they’re powerless too. They just didn’t have to take the dive.” Dean cut in.

“They aren’t who I’m talking about. Use your noodle, Dean. You know these guys.”

This time, Sam wanted to be heard. 

“Michael and Lucifer.”

“And bingo was his name-o. They may be stuck in the cage, but they’re also still at full strength, because I can hear ‘em duking it out down there."

It only took a second for Dean to put his foot down. “We are not letting either of those no-good douchebags out of the pit. You here to put the angels back in heaven or end the whole friggin’ world?”

“Re-laaaax, Dean. I’m not talking about letting them out. Family or not, Lucifer tried to kill me. I just mean that any angel who stayed where God intended them to be during the fall... they’re alive.”

“Where God intended? What does that even mean?”

“It means Metatron kept his powers because he’s still in heaven. Means I kept ‘em because God set me up real nice on purpose. Michael and Lucifer kept theirs because they stayed in the Cage. So the angels who didn’t get the boot, they’ll have their powers too.”

“You’re not making any sense.” Sam said shortly. Gabriel looked over at him. 

“Dead angels, Samsquatch. Balthazar, maybe. Or Samandriel? Where do you think they go when they die? Florida?”

“Oh, sure, now it’s all clear. Why didn’t we think of resurrecting dead angels and leading a revolution before?” Sarcasm dripped off Dean’s words so thickly that even Castiel couldn’t have missed it.

“But I can do it, numbskull. Now sit tight, while I work my magic.”

Sam made a significant glance over at Dean and his brother shrugged in reply. Gabriel had poofed out again. They could only wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay I don't know if the angels falling exactly equals losing their grace and powers, too, but for god's sake if they don't all loose their powers/memories like Anna did, then wouldn't Metatron just have an army of P/O'd angels after his head?
> 
> Also I'm sorry about the overabundance of exposition, there will be more action and whatnot later. I just wanted to barf up some form of a plot first. So yeah, it's picking up. And hopefully that last part was clear - what liberties I took in terms of who keeps their powers, and who doesn't? If not, lemme know in the comments and I'll see if I can clear it up for you next chapter. I can't promise any new characters quite yet but if there's an angel you'd like to hear from again, feel free to put their name out there. I just can't do Mike or Luci. That's another story in itself. One with more Adam.
> 
> Err, anyways, that's it for today. Later.


	3. Miracles out of Nowhere

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gabriel heads out to get some back up for the boys, but things don't go quite as planned.

Angel Heaven – or Angel Purgatory to be a little more accurate, was no North Star and to the left journey. In fact, it wasn’t much of a ‘journey’ at all. More like a pain in the ass. Since there was no direct route right into heaven, it involved a bit of a road trip. In order to access the souls stored upstairs, Gabriel would have to find a holy location, recite an old enochian spell, do the hokey-pokey...

“Excuse Sir, no more tours. You may return tomorrow at dawn, if you-“the man spoke in a broken English to Gabriel, who sighed internally at the inconvenience. Not that it would take much effort to get around the tour guide. Actually, it was probably better he would be alone. Even though a lot of crazily religious folk made pilgrimages to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, he didn’t think they’d take to his spell-work. It took only a moment to freeze the scene around him and make his way down the main corridor of the church, finding the altar looking nearly exactly as it had the last time he had been there, with Michael. But that was a very long time ago, and any sentimental feelings had to be pushed aside for the time being. Before getting down to business, Gabriel took a moment to survey the room around him. People kept the place respectably clean, save for a muddy boot print here or there. Even on a non-religious holiday weekend, it was evident the Church was a popular site. It was, after all, where they say Jesus was buried (Gabriel knew it to be true, hence his choice of the church for an extremely holy site).

Because he would be sitting a while, Gabriel snapped his fingers again for a pillow to appear on the ground, which he then took a seat on, crossing his legs underneath him.  
“Alright, let’s do this.”

*

Back home, Sam and Dean were waiting for Gabriel’s arrival back. It had been over an hour now, and because they still really didn’t know what the guy was up to, there was no way to tell if he was proving successful or not.

“He could be screwing with us again. Who says he’s even gonna come back?” Sam said. Dean knew Sam’s cold nature towards the angel was on part because of everything that Metatron had lied about. He said he wanted to help but Sam, he couldn’t accept that again. Maybe he was right, though. It wouldn’t be the first time someone had lied to them about wanting to help. All these thoughts and accusations were running rampant in Dean’s mind, suggesting, denying, and leaving a sinking feeling of anxiety in his stomach. There would be no way to know what was happening until Gabriel showed back up. ‘If he showed back up’, a voice in Dean’s head corrected him.

The four of them left auras of tense nervousness wherever they went the rest of the night, and into the morning. Kevin was staring blankly at a book that he knew would tell him nothing, but he was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn’t even consider putting it away. All his time spend reading those tablets, and not once had it mentioned an Angel Purgatory, let alone one that could be accessed directly from Earth. Then again, Metatron had lied about a lot. Maybe he had just decided not to record that part of God’s designs. Gabriel was an arch angel, of course he would know more than any other angel he had ever met. Not that he had met that many at all.

Anxious and anticipating, the Winchesters and their two friends waited for a sign. Of victory, defeat... of anything that would tell them if they were anywhere near closer to solving their latest problem. It was almost noon the next day when Gabriel appeared again.

Dean didn’t waste any time rising from his chair and prompting the angel to speak. “Well?” 

“You boys are lucky I made it when I did,” Gabriel started, conjuring up a candy bar to snack on while he spoke. “Any and all access points to Heaven and its subdivisions, including the place where they send all the angels’ souls.”

“But you got in, right?” Charlie asked eagerly. 

“That I did. Or, my arm did, anyways. I had to play Monkeys in a Barrel for a while there, but managed to pull out three angels on purpose. Dropped them in that angel-proofed panic room of yours before I came back up here, in case they don’t take to being alive again just yet.”

“Well that’s great. We can go in there and start asking questions whenever they’re ready.” Charlie smiled. “I’ve always wanted to do some Good Cop, Bad Cop.”

“See, Sam, everything’s turning up daisies for once.” Dean looked at his brother, whose face seemed permanently stuck on a stoic frown. “Which is pretty weird for us, and makes me think it didn’t all go as well as that?” He looked back over at Gabriel. There had to be a catch. He was a hunter, for God’s sake. Nothing ever worked out this well.

Gabriel made a bit of a strange expression as he dragged out a “weeeeeeeeeeeell...”

“You did do something, though, didn’t you?” Dean asked. He could feel his blood start to boil. Nothing could be done, could it?

“I pulled out a few of my brothers on purpose, yeah...” his voice trailed off. Clearly something was not right.

“But?” Sam looked up, his tone biting. Of course he had to go screw it up.

“I might’ve left the portal open a little too long.” He said it innocently and quickly, bracing for the inevitable explosion. “And someone might’ve hitched a free ride by accident.”

At this, Sam found himself focusing intensely on keeping his breathing steady, and he could feel the anger threatening to overtake him as he fought to keep his words calm.  
“What. Did. You. Let. Out.”

Gabriel could have sworn he saw Sam’s nostrils flare, like a bull readying to run at a matador, except that he was the terribly unprepared matador waving a red cloth with the words “kill me” printed on it. His only solace was in the fact that if it came down to a fight, he would win. But there wouldn’t be any fighting today. Hopefully, he thought, there wouldn’t be any fighting at all. Not between them at least. There were bigger fish to be frying. For example, the very angry fish that he had accidentally – stress on accidentally- let out of Angel Purgatory.

“Dean...” Gabriel finally continued, voice strained slightly, but still trying to remain casual, “do you remember an angel by the name of Zachariah?”

*

The sound of water dripping off a stalactite echoed in the dark cavern. The tour guide and her pack of overexcited tourists with headlamps made their way through the dark, light from their lamps cutting sharply through the black. There was nothing much to see in the cave, really, just bare walls, rocks, and the occasional lizard. Kai, the tour guide, had been leading people through the same cave for so many months now that she knew it better than the back of her hand. Nothing in the cave ever changed, not a rock out of place. She would never lead her group astray, never take a wrong turn, and never, ever, "ah!"

Kai tripped over something in her path. Adrenaline suddenly pumped through her veins as she pulled out an extra-strength flashlight from her bag and shone it down on the thing obstructing her path. She let out a sharp scream. Other tourists began to crowd her, to see just what was so terrifying and when they saw the mass on the floor, they reacted in much the same way, some screaming, some stumbling backwards onto each other in a rush to be further away from it than their companions. On the ground in front of them, lying in a heap, a gaping hole through the bottom of his jaw, was a man. Older than fifty, balding, and large. At the commotion his eyes snapped open, dull blue eyes, tinged with grey. He could see perfectly in the dark. See the humans clamoring about, lost, confused, and worthless as always. And he knew what he had feared before his death had come to pass. Humanity was still thriving on God's earth. The Apocalypse had never come. Michael and Lucifer had never taken their vessels. But they would because Zachariah knew, better than anyone that no matter what those boys had done, no matter if they had stuck Lucifer back in his cage, the prophesies were true, and just as the Morningstar had told the Michael Sword... they would always end up

here.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are kind of shifting in terms of what I'm really going for here, but I liked the idea of having the 2014!Verse kind of mixed in with season 9, since Cas is human already. Things aren't going to be quite the same as they were portrayed in 5x04, because a lot of things Zachariah didn't anticipate at the time did happen, rather than just the plain ol' Apocalypse, but I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.


	4. Nobody's Home (Anymore).

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More allies, and soon enough, the team is on the move. Not by choice.

“What the hell are you talking about? I thought you said you were gonna bring back someone useful. Not another damn apocalypse-loving douchebag!” Dean wasted no time in getting in Gabriel’s face, but the archangel didn’t blink. It wasn’t like him to get intimidated by the likes of Dean Winchester

“Look, it was always a possibility that someone unwanted would hitch a ride,” Gabriel shrugged, “and of all the angels, you should be glad it was him. There were a lot worse folk down there, you got off easy, Dean-o.”

“Bull. Zachariah tried to kill me and Dean. Now he’s just another problem we don’t have time to deal with.” Sam spoke up from his seat in the corner. 

“Last I checked, no one’s too thrilled that Metatron’s got his grimy hands all over heaven. For all we know, Zach’s gonna want on the bandwagon.”

“Okay, so, that’s the bad news, right? On the bright side, you got other angels out for us... so, what about them?” Charlie piped up. 

Grateful for the slight change in subject, Gabriel pointed a finger at her. 

“Right!” He said, “Now if you’ll follow me, I’d like to reintroduce some old friends.” 

He snapped his fingers and his location immediately changed to the basement room where his brothers were sitting in the plush chairs he had conjured up upon first arrival. Snapping his fingers again, Dean and Sam were surprised to find themselves standing next to him, looking down at two familiar faces, a strange multitude of emotions washing over each of them. Guilt, mostly, was what Dean felt. He had led both of these angels to their deaths, hadn’t he? They had been just more victims in his tangled up web of connections. And Sam... well, he didn’t know what to think. Hadn’t they both been Castiel’s victims? Would they be willing to help find the man who had killed them? He made a sideways glance at his brother, but Dean was focused entirely on the angels’ faces. 

“Dean, Sammy. You remember Balthazar, don’t you?” Balthazar smiled blandly up at the boys, but it didn’t reach his eyes. 

“Glad to be back. I think.” He said, taking a glass of red wine from the small table beside him. Dean didn’t bother stopping to wonder where it had come from. Instead, his eyes traced over to the other angel’s face, young and innocent as the day they had met.

“Dean Winchester. I didn’t think we would ever meet again.” 

Dean wasn’t one to forget the names of the dead, but Gabriel cut in to reintroduce him, anyway. 

“And Samandriel, always the polite one.” Still dressed in the red and white stripes of his vessel’s Weiner Hut uniform, but lacking the hat, Dean let himself smile a little at the ridiculous get-up. Keeping a trench coat on was one thing, but the whole number was a little much. 

“Yeah, I remember... Alfie.”

Before anyone could make any further comment, there were footsteps on the stairs, and the door opened to reveal that Kevin and Charlie had found them.

“You forgot about us up there!” Charlie accused, pushing inside. Balthazar put down his drink and leaned forward. 

“There’s a lady on the team, now, boys?”

“So not your type.” Charlie brushed him off, turning back to the Winchesters and the archangel. “You know, we’re a part of this team too.”

“Charlie, could you give us a-” Sam cut in, sounding more exasperated than earlier, but Samandriel’s exclamation of surprise cut him off. 

“The prophet is alive!?”

Now Kevin stepped forward, putting himself in the light for everyone to see. Indeed he was not in the shape Samandriel had last seen him in, but people rarely were after a year. Kevin was pale, and it didn’t take an angel to see the exhaustion in his eyes. That would come with the job, however. Reading the tablets required much more strength than most things.

“Yeah he is. Kevin, upstairs. I need you getting everything you can out of that Angel Tablet. Charlie, go with him. Make sure he doesn’t pass out on the way up.”

When the door was sealed shut again, Dean turned on the group. “Right, so now what?”

“Thank you, maybe?” Gabriel suggested, leaning on the back of Samandriel’s chair.

“What about ‘screw you’, Gabriel. I was having a right old time in there, until you yanked me out.” Balthazar looked up at, what Dean assumed must be, his older brother.

“Oh sure, like you loved being dead so much. Why’d you hold on so tight to me then?” Gabriel challenged.

“Because Samandriel was clinging to me for dear life and resurrection, and I wasn’t about to let the kid fall, was I?” Dean faintly heard Samandriel murmur something of thanks, but his brothers were getting too into the argument to hear it, so he put his head down and folded his hands in his lap.

“Could we not do this now?” Dean stepped in, putting a hand to his side, where his gun was holstered. “Sam, you wanna say something?” From the corner of the room, Sam shook his head.

“This one’s not about us. We’ve got our own problems.” Sam shrugged. He hoped Dean would pick up on the allusion. Their cases were fairly similar, Sam had to say. He wouldn’t outright say it to his brother but there was a part of him that still felt his dying for the cause would have been for the greater good. Balthazar probably thought the same thing. 

“I thought you said you were good, Sam.” Dean said, turning from the angels to Sam for a moment, “or is there something else you’re not telling me about those damned trials?”  
“I dunno, Dean. Maybe there is, we do seem to have a tendency to hide stuff from each other, don’t we?”

Everyone’s voices grew and swelled in the basement room as they argued with each other, accusations of everything from abandonment to betrayal flying. The strangest part was that Sam found it therapeutic, getting it all off his chest. Dean might not be hearing it, sure, but just saying it out loud, that maybe he still wasn’t up to scratch after the trials, that he was fighting through the pain every day and that maybe, just a little bit he though, “you should have let me die!”

Everyone stopped. Samandriel finally looked up from his hands, and Gabriel, who had Balthazar by the collar, put him down and looked over at Sam. The silence was deafening. The way Dean was looking at him, with fear and disappointment and sadness swimming in his eyes broke him. 

“Like hell I should have.” Dean choked out. Sam couldn’t look at him anymore. He tried to brush past him, but Dean caught his wrist. Looking from one Winchester to the other, Gabriel took a side. “Dean, let him go.” He said softly. Before Sam could reach the door, however, it swung open for the second time, uncovering a frantic and wide-eyed Kevin, holding two stone tablets and a laptop in his arms. Charlie was behind him, looking just as panicked.

“We gotta get out!” He shouted from the door. Nobody moved at first, so he shouted again, “WE GOTTA GET OUT!” Without a second thought, Samandriel was at the door next to him, taking a firm grip on both Kevin and Charlie’s arms. “Hold on.” He said, and in a flutter of wings, they were gone.

“Son of a-” Balthazar grabbed Dean and disappeared before Dean could get out the end of his sentence. Gabriel looked to see Sam turn slightly towards him. Instead of grabbing him as the others had done, Gabriel held out his arm for Sam to take, as if asking if he still wanted to come. Or rather, if the alternative was preferred. To his relief, Sam took his arm, gripping it tight in his large hand. In a snap, they were gone.

*

In a motel room in Topeka, Kevin explained that he had seen one of the Men of Letters’ sensors trip, which meant that an uninvited angel was within ten miles of the bunker.  
“You sure it wasn’t the three of us setting it off, Kev?” Gabriel asked. Kevin shook his head.

“It already picked you guys up, this would be someone new.”

“So you’re saying Zachariah’s already picked up our trail. Awesome.” Dean groaned sarcastically, leaning back on the bed, Magic Fingers buzzing underneath him. Sam, who had remained sitting next to Gabriel, couldn’t bring himself to look up, though he spoke.

“So does this mean we’re sitting ducks? It’s pretty stupid, isn’t it?”

“What?” Dean sat up a little straighter and watched his brother stare intently at his feet.

“I just mean,” came his voice, “what if he wants to help?”

“Sam, less than twenty-four hours ago, you were getting ready to shiv Gabriel and now you wanna start a club with Zachariah?”

“You wanted to kill me!?” Gabriel made a face of mock hurt and put a hand over his heart. Ignoring his comment, Sam continued.

“Well, he’s real big on tradition, right? So he must be pissed that Heaven’s been turned upside down, huh?”

“Oh-ho, no.” Dean got up off the bed entirely, raising a finger. “I’ve had enough of this ‘enemy of my enemy is my friend’ crap. I’m done holding out on anything for these dicks. We’re gonna kill him, and then we’re gonna find Cas, and then we’re gonna put all the angels back where they belong, and then we’re gonna be done.” Easier said than done, Dean added to himself. But he needed to be positive towards Sam, even if it was while he was completely shooting down his suggestions.

“It’s worked before Dean. Besides, look at us. Three angels on our side, against one? If he says no, or betrays us, we can take him.”

Dean sighed. He didn’t really know what to think, but... it wasn’t a horrible plan. They had made worse plans... that had worked.

“Dean, I agree with your brother. Zachariah may be a seraph, but Gabriel is an archangel. I may not be of much use in a fight, but you alone killed him once before.” Samandriel raised a good point.

“I wasn’t alone.” Dean whispered. He looked over at Sam. “Alright, we’ve all gotta be on the same page here. Everyone in favour of trying to reason with that douchebag, say I.”

Sam said it first, but Gabriel said it louder. He looked up at Sam and smiled. Sam didn’t smile back but he was making progress. Charlie spoke up next, with an “I.” of her own, and Kevin and Samandriel followed suit. Dean turned to look at Balthazar, who was lounging in the corner farthest from the group.

“You do remember the last time I signed on to help you.” He glared, almost sarcastically back at Dean. Dean shrugged. If Balthazar didn’t want to be there, fine by him. Not like the guy was pivotal to the plan.

“Oh, I’m gonna hate myself for this in the morning.” Balthazar finally said, “but... I’m on your side. Again.”

Gabriel clapped his hands together, “glad to hear it, Balthy.”

“You’re still bastards.”

Gabriel made some reply that Dean didn't hear. He was working hard as he could to block everyone out. Dean rubbed his forehead as he made his way back over to his bed, where the magic fingers had just finished vibrating. He lay down and pulled the cord on the lamp stuck in the wall. “Alright kids, let’s bunk up.” It was going to be a long night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love the smell of a budding Sabriel relationship in the morning. This could get interesting. What a wait from the last chapter (it ain't Sherlock, but hey)! It shouldn't be so bad next time, I've got a real solid plan from here on out.


	5. Chapter 5

They had to move rather quickly after waking up the next morning. Even if they wanted Zachariah to find them, they wanted to be prepared. Samandriel had gone out earlier, looking for a place the team could set up camp, aside from the bunker- they didn’t want Zachariah to be that close to any of the Men Of Letters’ stuff. Gabriel had conjured up breakfast for the humans of the group, and Dean was surprised to see that Sam barely hesitated to dig in. Balthazar was skulking in the corner again, as he had last night, exuding an aura of hostility. Much as he had agreed to the plan, there were a few plot holes in his mind – namely, the fact that sooner or later, he would be on the same team as his old friend, Castiel. When they had last met, Cas had gotten a little... stabby. Balthazar could still feel the cold blade pressing into his back, and when he moved his hand over the place it had entered, he found the wound open, as if it had created a hole in his body that would never seal over. He was caught up in tracing that specific area of his back when Samandriel’s wings fluttered, announcing his arrival.

“I found a place. It was a camp of some sort near Kansas City. There’s a big cabin you can ward against Angels, Dean. Sam. I can take you there now.”

Without waiting for a reply, Samandriel whisked the two brothers off to the camp, where they appeared in a fairly large sized wood cabin. Dean immediately began examining the papers left on a desk in the far corner of the building. Tilting his head, he read the first pamphlet that lay there.

“Camp Chitaqua.” He read. “Place used to be a boot camp.” He laughed dryly. Returning to the center of the room, he saw that Samandriel had gone, probably back to the motel to give the other angels the right directions.

“Let’s find some spray paint or something, we can start angel proofing the place.” Sam made to leave, but Dean grabbed his arm.

“About last night, what you said...”

“It’s nothing, Dean.” Sam shook his hand off, and made to leave again. Dean stepped in front of him.

“It’s not ‘nothing,’ Sammy. You told me you wanted to die.”

“To close the Gates of Hell, yeah, I think it would’ve been worth it.” Sam said. Why couldn’t Dean understand that it was all for the greater good

“It’s never worth it, Sam. We can find another way. We always find a way.” Dean’s look of conviction was enough to push Sam over the edge. If anyone could find a way to turn things in their favour, it was his big brother. Though he hadn’t felt it before, he was suddenly looking at his death wish from another angle. Dean didn’t have anyone else. Lisa, Ben, Bobby... anyone Dean had ever cared about was gone. So standing there in that log cabin, smelling the rotting wood, and the rain outside, Sam vowed to himself that he wouldn’t die. Not for himself, not for the chance to shut off hell – just for Dean. He would stay for Dean.

“Okay.” Sam sighed. He felt Dean relax immediately. “Now go find that spray paint.”

Before Dean could move, there was another flutter of wings and Gabriel was sitting on an overturned flowerpot across from them.

“Hold on with those sigils. Balthazar’s dragging ass.” 

It only took a few more minutes before Balthazar appeared, Charlie and Kevin clinging onto his arms. Samandriel followed, holding a duffel bag.

“I brought some weapons... and other supplies.” He gingerly put the bag down on the floor as if afraid the guns would go off upon impact. Sam went to it, and crouched down, pulling out cans of spray paint, tossing them to Dean, and putting the demon killing knife in a sheath on his belt.

“See you outside, boys.” Balthazar said, making his exit rather quickly, followed by the two other angels.

While the humans were painting up the main building, Gabriel was lazily waving his fingers, making small pink flowers bloom in the grass outside. He was getting soaked in the rain, but didn’t mind. Not like he could catch cold or anything. He sensed his brother’s presence immediately.

“Balthazar. Still not happy to be here, I see.” He said, making another flower bloom.

“You do know it was their angel that killed me in the first place.” Balthazar stated. Gabriel shrugged. 

“You and Samandriel. Kid doesn’t seem so pissed about it.”

“He’s naïve, Gabriel. And he was never so close. He hadn’t been betrayed like I had.” Of all people, Balthazar thought Gabriel would be the most sympathetic – Lucifer had tried to kill him, for Dad’s sake. But no one would take his side here, would they? Perhaps it was better. Castiel hadn’t meant it, after all. He was sure to apologize as soon as he was found. Gabriel was talking again now, something about understanding and forgiveness, but Balthazar wouldn’t hear him. He was making up his own mind – to forgive and forget. Hadn’t that been how he had always lived? Besides, he was here thanks to the archangel before him. The least he could do was help his cause. Not to say high-tailing it wasn’t an option if things got too out of hand. He had a second chance at life, he wasn’t about to toss it out the window for the benefactor.

Gabriel had stopped talking now, had went back to his small flower garden. Balthazar didn’t stand in the soggy grass much longer, electing instead to find a cabin to call his own. There was a row of them a ways down the gravel road that lead straight through the camp, and as he set off towards them he couldn’t help but feel a little pleased that he would get to create his new digs.

*

Outside the main building, where Sam and Dean had taken the loft as their own room, the group of eight reconvened that night. Dean led the meeting through points of order, everything from asking how they could get the Impala there without having to return to a possible trap by Zachariah, to what their next move against Metatron could and should be. Gabriel volunteered to transport the Impala by angel-magic, to which Dean hesitantly agreed. As for Metatron, it was of the general opinion that finding Cas should take first priority. 

“He must’ve been close to Metatron when whatever the hell happened... happened. So we find Cas. And we pick up any other fallen angels we can on the way. We’ve got room for them to stay here, and if it comes to a fight, we’ll need the extra man power.” Dean said. “Alfie, Balthazar, is there any way you could track fallen angels?”

Samandriel looked concerned. “There’s no way to know exact current locations, but I could probably find the area where an angel’s Grace hit the ground. Finding the angel themselves, that’s a little harder.”

“Is there any way at all?” Sam prompted him to think.

“Well, it’s not for angels, but if you’re looking for a human, you could always use a locator spell. Since it seems Cas will be human, that should do the trick, right?” Balthazar spoke up.

Kevin nodded. “I can start working on that. But we’ll need something that belonged to Castiel. Dean, Sam... do you have anything of his?”

Sam shook his head, but Dean hesitated. He didn’t like giving up his friends’ stuff, especially when it was the only thing he had from them. Everyone was looking at Dean now, though, and there was nothing for it. If he wanted to find Cas, he would have to share.

“It’s a wristband... from that mental hospital.” He almost whispered, reaching into his coat pocket. Out he pulled the battered band, cut jaggedly in one place, and bent in nearly every other. The name was smudged, the letters unreadable. Dean held onto it tightly for a second before dropping it into Kevin’s hand. Kevin thanked him, and rushed back inside.

The remaining group stood about for a few seconds before Dean turned back from watching Kevin walk away.

“While he does that, we should check out the rest of this place. Then we can talk about calling Zachariah.” Dean suggested. Sam nodded. 

“I’ll check perimeters. See just how much land we have to work with here.” Sam started off on his own, and Dean thought for a moment about sending Charlie with him, but thought better of it. Though his brother had promised he didn’t, Dean couldn’t stop thinking about his admitted death wish.

“You two, do something useful. Charlie, c’mon.” Dean gestured for the girl to follow him, and she did, trailing after him down the gravel road. Balthazar decided to take ‘useful’ as tidying up some cabins with magic, and Samandriel placed himself on the porch of the main building, intent on making sure the prophet was okay.

*

Sam had made it to the main entrance alone, but his disjointed thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a car horn. He looked up to see Gabriel leaning on the hood of the Impala, watching him.

“Hey Sammy. What’d I miss?” He asked, striding over to him.

“They’re doing a locator spell to find Cas. We should be on the road tonight, at the latest.”

Gabriel shoved his hands in his pockets and walked slowly alongside Sam. They had gone maybe half a mile before he spoke again.

“Soooo...” He started. “You and Dean still at each other’s throats?”

Sam stopped in his tracks. “No.” He said firmly. Gabriel looked up at him.

“If you say so. Just remember, if you need a mediator, don’t ask Balthazar.” Gabriel shrugged. Hey, if Sam didn’t want to talk about it, who was he to perpetuate the problem? They continued to walk in silence.

*

Inside the main building, the last drops of rain dripped through the roof, into the small puddled that Kevin tried to avoid as he collected everything he needed. A map of the United States was easy to find, pinned to the bulletin board on the wall. He had matches in his pocket already. And of course, the hospital ID bracelet that Dean had given him. Finding a dry spot on the floor, Kevin lay out the map and put the bracelet on top of it. Sitting cross legged in front of it, he recited a short verse he had memorized and struck a match. The rest of the spell would be watching and waiting.

It took only a few minutes for the bracelet to catch fire and begin burning away at the map itself. "Come on, come on." Kevin urged it. If they couldn't find Castiel this way, then they might have to start printing Missing Persons posters, like the rest of the world did when a loved one went missing.

Luckily, it didn't seem they would have to find a printer. The map was nearly burnt to a crisp, save one small area of Wyoming. That would be it. "Castiel, we're gonna come get you. Just hang on." Kevin whispered, praying to no one that the ex-angel wouldn't go wandering out too far, or get himself hurt.

*

Dean and Charlie were on nearly the opposite side of the camp, making mental maps and coming up with the most effective strategies lest they need to fight or run. They took a turn down the main road to a section of cabins, and stopped.

“What was that that you gave to Kevin?” Charlie asked nonchalantly. Dean looked at her and took a deep breath.

“Medical bracelet. I cut it off of him way back when, and I guess I never threw it out.”

“No, you just kept it in your coat pocket.” Dean looked at the girl. She was smiling to herself.

“What’s wrong with that?”

Charlie shrugged. “Nothing I guess. Hey, I kept some of my girlfriend’s stuff after I left to help you guys.”

Dean trudged ahead a little ways, up the steps of the cabin in front of them. He looked over his shoulder at Charlie and raised his eyebrows. 

“Cas is NOT my girl- boyfriend.” He said firmly. Charlie made a sturgeon face and “huh”-ed. Shaking his head, Dean picked the lock on the door and it creaked open. 

“Son of a-” Dean whispered.

Charlie came up behind him, peering over his shoulder. “What a dump.” She said. Dean didn’t respond. He walked further into the room, hand running along the wall. Charlie watched him, feeling considerably out of the loop. She gave him a moment before she asked, “what?” No response. Again, more persistently. “What?”

Dean stopped and turned around. 

“Camp Chitaqua.” He said. “And Cas is a human.” Charlie surveyed him. He was nearly shaking.

“So...?” She asked. It still wasn’t clicking for her.

“I know this place. This story. I've been through this before. And it doesn't end well.”

Dean looked her dead in the eye, and even though she had no clue what he meant, she could tell he was scared. And when Dean Winchester was scared, things were not looking good.


	6. In Your Eyes

ONE WEEK AGO; JUST OUTSIDE SHERIDAN, WY.

Castiel looked up at the sky.

The angels weren’t falling anymore. The fight was well over. It seemed he had lost

‘Find a nice girl,’ Metatron had said. That was where he would start. Though there was nothing he could truly do to fight Metatron, he could disobey. The one thing he had always been good at was disregarding orders. Being human would only make that easier. There was free will, more than ever. Choice. Freedom. His emotions were clearer than ever and his heart really did beat in his chest. What he had witnessed Sam and Dean felt... that was his now. If only he could find them. Share it with them. But he was lost. Hopelessly alone in a town miles upon miles away from the bunker and perhaps even further from his friends. He hadn’t been able to reach them by phone, and sending a letter would be next to useless. The only way he could see contacting them was to find a way straight to the bunker himself, and wait for their possible return. But as a human, he was weak. Though he knew how to fight, crossing a demon on his path may spell certain death. He had no money for a cab, and hitch hiking had proven dangerous for millions of other humans. Exhausted and alone, Castiel lay down on the cold ground of the forest, and waited for sleep to take him.

NOW; CAMP CHITAQUA

Dean stood in the cabin he remembered from five year previous. For a moment, he feared that Zachariah had already gotten to him, implemented the fake world again. But no future self stood in the room, no hippie Cas showed himself, and Sam... Sam was only a few miles away at most. He steadied his breathing, listening to Charlie’s repeated “what? What?” Get progressively louder and more urgent. She was on her toes in front of him, about to slap him back into the real world, but he grabbed her arm before it could make contact.   
Walking briskly back to the main building, Dean filled Charlie in on the details of his time spent visiting Zachariah’s little land of “what-ifs”. He had nearly gotten everything out, about Lucifer and the Croatoan virus, Cas, and Chuck, when she stopped in her tracks, blocking Dean from walking any further.

“What about Sam?”

Dean took another deep breath, and struggled to get the statement out.

“Sam was... Sam became Lucifer’s vessel.”

Charlie looked down at their feet, mud caked around the bottom of their boots. Small puddles formed where the rainwater had filled in the gravel. Sam... Was Lucifer. It was hard to comprehend. And it was even harder to look Dean in the eye. Instead, Charlie kept her eyes on her shoes, after letting out a half-hearted “oh,” and continuing to walk.

When they arrived back at the main building it was to find Samandriel hadn’t moved, and Sam and Gabriel were already back. Dean immediately bee-lined for Sam, and pulled him away from the group. He explained what he saw, but to his surprise, Sam wasn’t concerned.

“Dean, Lucifer and Michael are in the cage. The Croats were all taken out. That universe doesn’t exist anymore- it can’t.”

“In that future, Lucifer told me-“

“Who cares what the freaking Devil told you, man, he’s not here anymore. We already won that fight.”

Despite his brother’s reassurance, Dean couldn’t shake the ominous feeling the discovery had given him, even when Kevin came out with the good news.

“So you’ll be happy to know I picked up your wheels.” Gabriel pointed down the main road, and Dean could see the bumper of his baby gleaming in the sunlight. He grabbed the map from Kevin and without a word, began walking toward the car. He heard Sam start following him, but he picked up the pace and added, “I’m going alone. You stay here and make sure we don’t have any unexpected visitors just yet. I’ve got my other other phone.”

*

Behind the wheel of his Impala, Dean finally allowed himself to relax. Sam’s words were really starting to sink in. Sure, they didn’t ice the Devil, but they did the next best thing and that story was long over. Zachariah wouldn’t make it ten minutes against the team at Camp, let alone long enough to do any kind of real damage. And with Cas back in the game... Cas. His only real focus over the past week had been finding his angel and bringing him home. Not that Castiel was an angel anymore. He seemed to be completely human, as per Kevin’s spell. But until then, Dean hadn’t known. Cas had been with Metatron when it happened, and though Dean had pushed the worry out of his waking thoughts, he was glad he wouldn’t be having the nightmare in which Cas was dead anymore. Not that finding Sam alive had stopped those ones. He shook the thoughts and turned up the radio. Zeppelin was playing. A smile twitched at the corner of Dean’s lips.

He had been driving about nine hours when he hit the town in question. Sheridan was not unlike every other small town in America – diners, motels, and small shops lined the main street. Though despite its mundane appearance, Dean had a feeling he would never quite forget this place. He pulled into the first motel he saw, and headed into the lobby.

At the reception desk, a young man in a flannel jacket and baseball cap leaned against the wall. 

“Checking in?” he asked.

“I’m looking for a guy, actually. Thought you might have seen him.” Dean strolled in, eyes moving everywhere but the other man’s face. The reception guy took a toothpick out of his mouth.

“What’s your guy look like?"

Dean paused a moment. He hadn’t seen Cas in a while, but it was safe to assume a few things. 

“Black hair, about this tall. He probably would’ve been wearing a trench coat."

“I dunno man, a lotta people come through here.”

Dean finally met his eye. He could tell the jerk was looking for a bribe. He thought about pulling out his wallet, but god damn it he was not going to PAY to find Cas. So he casually strode closer to the desk, hands in his pockets.

“Y’know, if you could just think a little harder. I’m sure you’d remember him.” The guy leaned forward.

“Oh yeah, yeah. Just lookin’ for a little something to... jog the memory.” Dean smiled understandingly, gave a short laugh, leaned over the desk, and grabbed the guy by the collar. He was sure he’d smell the mint on his breath when he spoke.

“Listen to me, you’re gonna tell me where my friend is without giving me this crap, or I will burn your establishment to the ground.”

The guy’s eyes widened in fear when Dean put him back down. He tugged at his collar nervously and said, “Cabin 12. My niece dragged him in here from the forest.”

Without a word, Dean left the lobby and headed down the row of cabins until he reached 12. He took a few deep breaths, readying himself for whatever he found behind the door, raised a fist, and knocked.

There was some shuffling inside, and Dean held his breath while the lock clicked and the knob on the door turned. He had told himself he was prepared for anything, but was still overcome with a sudden wave of worry. He felt his entire body relax, however, when the door opened wide enough to reveal Castiel, dressed not unlike he or Sam would, smiling at the sight that greeted him. They fell into a hug, and unlike their reunion in purgatory, Dean could feel Castiel hug back. He was warm, and Dean found comfort in seeing his friend again – and in one piece. Dean stepped back again to survey Cas in more detail. The old, familiar trench coat was still wrapped almost protectively around his form. Dean broke a smile, eyes sweeping from his clothes to Cas’s jaw and raising his brows. “You got the peach fuzz back, Cas.”

Cas ran a hand along the beard that had begun to grow. “Indeed I have.” He agreed. A relieved silence hung in the air a moment before Dean let himself into the cabin and sat down on the bed. He followed Castiel’s movements to the nightstand, which he leaned up against.

“You’re human, then?” Dean asked.

“I am.” There was a hint of sadness in Cas’s otherwise steady voice, accented by the concerned look that flickered across his face.

“Then we’ve got a bit of a drive ahead of us. You hungry?” Dean resolved to normalcy, though he knew the situation’s abnormality would have to be discussed. Now all he wanted was to drive Cas into the town and get him a burger so they could hit the road back to camp. 

Cas paused to consider this. “I think so.”

Dean smirked. The guy didn’t even know what it felt like to be hungry. This would certainly be a learning experience. “Impala’s out front. I’m just gonna use the bathroom, I’ll be right out.” For a moment, Dean worried about leaving Cas in the car alone, but shrugged off the overprotective feeling. Cas was human now, not stupid. Sitting in a car was hardly a new experience. So he went into the bathroom and closed the door behind him. He looked into the mirror, and ran a hand through his hair. It was the first time he had really looked at himself closely in a long time, and the inspection didn’t feel normal. He smiled a few forced smiles, and tried to make sure they looked natural. There was a thirteen hour drive ahead of him, and he didn’t want Cas any more concerned than he already was. Once he felt like he was collected, he unlocked the door and walked to his car. He felt lighter on his feet than he had on the way in, full of relief now, opposed to the anxiety upon his arrival. Dean swung open the door and dropped into the driver’s seat. Cas was sitting shotgun. When Dean turned on the car, the radio started blasting the last few bars of Sweet Child of Mine, and he looked over at Cas, whose movement had caught the corner of his eye. His hand was hovering over the radio dial. For a moment, Dean thought of his and Sam’s House Rules, but couldn’t bring himself to deny Cas anything right now.

“Go ahead.” He said, pulling out of the parking lot. Cas was fiddling with the dial only a few seconds when he felt Dean’s hand brush his away. It was strange how such a casual, even accidental touch, could ripple on a human’s skin, like a pebble hitting water, seemingly there for much longer than it was.

“What do you wanna hear?”

Cas’s mouth opened but no sound came out for a moment. Then he said, “Classical... Please.” 

It took Dean a second to find the right station but when he did, he let his eyes stray from the road a few seconds more, watching Cas sink into the passenger seat, eyes closed, revelling in the music that was pouring from the speakers. Dean felt his presence. It was as if they were at peace.

*

Back at the camp, Samandriel watched as Gabriel used his magic to redecorate a cabin to his tastes. Moving a throw pillow to the side, Samandriel sat down and continued to watch the older angel work. When Gabriel decided he was pleased with the positioning of a final throw blanket, he sat down across from Samandriel and leaned back.

“I never got the chance to thank you for resurrecting me, Gabriel.”

He waved a hand, as if to brush off the thanks. “It was no trouble, really.”

“I just...” Samandriel hesitated. He had to admit, he was a little awestruck by the archangel. Though Gabriel had left heaven, he had heard the stories about him standing up to Lucifer, and what he said about humans. Though many angels had insisted they never had anything against Gabriel, and weren’t holding grudges from when he left, Samandriel felt he was near alone in thinking his older brother really was one of the most remarkable angels, almost coming close to Castiel himself.

“Don’t worry about it, kiddo. All in a day’s work.”

Samandriel was quiet for another moment, before he came up with another question.

“You and Balthazar don’t seem to care about the prophet, do you?”

Gabriel let out a short laugh. “Neither of us are big fans of heaven in general, Alfie. Don’t see much reason for you to be either. ‘Sides, not like Kev’s of much use given our sticky situation.”

“Why wouldn’t I be... a fan of heaven

“If you hadn’t noticed, they’re the reason you were dead in the first place."

Yes, Castiel had killed him on heaven’s orders. But Samandriel had never thought it was in anything but the world’s best interest. Heaven being corrupt was a thought that had never crossed his mind. Only now did he fear he had been much too blind. It was no wonder so many of his brothers had left like Balthazar and Castiel did. Though he could not ‘leave’ as they had, Samandriel allowed his thoughts and perceptions to change as Gabriel described their side of the story (albeit in a slightly self-centred way). Perhaps because there was no one up above to control and limit his thoughts anymore, Samandriel welcomed the new ideas, the real story of how Gabriel died standing up for humans, and just what the hell Naomi had done to Castiel. So Gabriel talked and Samandriel listened, asking the occasional question, for a long while, even after the lights in the main building went out, signalling that Sam had gone to sleep. The unabridged, uncensored history of heaven, however, kept the angels up until dawn, and the purr of the Impala’s engine. 

Dean was back.


	7. Dust in the Wind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At Castiel's request, plans take a detour in the form of rounding up fallen angels.

When Dean and Castiel pulled into the main gate, it was to find that everyone was awake. A full day had passed since Dean’s departure, and though the time frame had been expected, Sam had still spent the latter half of the evening impatiently awaiting his return. The camp may have been hidden from uninvited angels, the rest of the world was not, and if Zachariah had gotten to Dean on his trip...But he hadn’t. And Dean was back now, and Cas was with him. The two men got out of the Impala and trudged their way up towards Sam, who was waiting outside the main building. 

“Welcome home. Kinda.” Dean finally said, gesturing to the building and the cabins behind it. Cas didn’t acknowledge his comment, instead he walked up to Sam and clapped him on the shoulder.

“I am truly glad to see you alive, Sam.” He smiled. Slightly taken aback, Sam nodded and said, “Likewise, Cas.”

Having heard the engine, Gabriel and Samandriel approached the scene of the reunion, Gabriel’s shout of “Hey lil bro!” much overtaking Samandriel’s mumbled “hello...” Castiel smiled at the louder brother, but when he looked further to see where the smaller voice had come from, he took a step back, almost shielding himself with Dean’s body.

“Cas, what’s the-?” It dawned on Dean before he finished asking that Cas wasn't just looking at a resurrected angel, but one that he had killed himself. As if poor timing were cursed upon the group, Balthazar took this moment to appear with a flutter of wings behind Castiel, and when he turned to see who was there, Cas found himself involuntarily reaching for Dean’s sleeve, either because an instinct was telling him to flee, or a sense of crippling guilt was washing over him, making him feel as if he would fall to his knees if he did not steady himself. Most likely it was the latter. Dean tensed at the touch, and Castiel let go, feeling even guiltier than before. It was selfish to think these angels would have forgiven him for anything he had done, and he was standing there hiding behind the hunter, afraid to apologize for fear of rejection.

“Balthazar, I...” Cas reached a hand out to his old friend, a pleading look in his eye. Balthazar didn’t move away, but no sign of softness, forgiveness, or even anger crossed his face. Castiel was apologizing to a statue. Gabriel, sensing his brother's distress, cut into the apology.

"Cassie, are you feeling alright?" Cas turned from Balthazar, his body relaxing. It still felt foreign, the air that left his lungs as he exhaled his relief. Gabriel picked up on the discomfort and added, "newly human and all, you must want to get some rest, huh?" Cas narrowed his eyes at Gabriel.

"Dean told me you're still an angel."

"We all are." Gabriel shrugged, but the nonchalance didn't reach his eyes. He was sad for Castiel, truly.

"I may not be an angel like you, but I am still a hunter. I'm not fragile, Gabriel."

Gabriel raised his eyebrows, and with a "fair enough," he stepped back. He was getting curious as to what his brother would do next. It took a few moments for anyone to do anything, and Gabriel thought they may have stood in silence longer, if Kevin and Charlie had not crunched the gravel under their feet, annouoncing their arrival to the scene. Upon seeing Castiel, Kevin half-smiled, though it didn't reach his tired eyes. "You found him." He said, hardly overjoyed. The last time he had met Castiel, it was not a pleasant reminder as to his reason for being there. Dean nodded, adding that he was grateful for the spell Kevin had done. "Couldn't have done it without you, Kev." Charlie, on the other hand, was looking from Cas to Dean.

"So this is him." She said, in Dean's direction. Dean nodded.

"Cas, this is Charlie. Charlie, Cas."

"Cute." Charlie said, though the comment went unnoticed by the group.

Balthazar and Samandriel were still standing off to the side, but since it didn't seem apologies would be made that day, Sam decided to continue the conversation on to the pressing issues at hand.

"If you believe we should take on Zachariah immediately, it won't be hard to find him, but..." Cas was deep in thought once Sam had finished explaining the plan to him. "There are other fallen angels, you know."

Dean's brow furrowed, "yeah. And if all goes well, they'll be back up in heaven by next Thursday."

"I mean, they're lost. Scared. Possibly dead." Cas shrugged. "Shouldn't we be concerned about them?"

Dean thought for a moment, then asked, "so you want us to turn this place into a Daycare center for fallen Angels?"

"A refugee camp of sorts, yes."

For a moment, Dean flashed back to the future Zachariah had shown him - all the other humans who had been there with him, could they have been angels? Their situation was already dangerously similar, did he really want to let in the cannon fodder, too? But the way Cas was looking at him, these were his siblings. He had already lost so many of them - to their own hands. And Dean would be damned before he let more people die because of his selfish - what was it? Paranoia? He sighed, "fine. We'll start with places where shooting stars fell last week, and hope no one's wandered too far. Everyone pair up with an angel, we'll cover more ground if we split up. Cas, you're with me."

*

The pairs split up after a rushed lunch of processed cheese slices, a pack of twizzlers, and beer. They had agreed to meet up again after twelve hours, and whomever they picked up in that time frame would be the chosen few who got "rescued." There wasn't too much room at the camp, and if it weren't for Cas's concern, they wouldn't be doing this at all. There were bigger fish to fry, namely, Zachariah. Balthazar, already not eager to be helping, was turned even more bitter by Dean's determination to relieve every one of Castiel's needs. How selfish could the boy get, when there was a world at stake? If she was angered, Charlie wasn't letting on nearly as openly. In fact, as they walked up to the scorched crater that a fiery ball of fallen angel had left just outside of Fargo, North Dakota, Balthazar wondered if she really even grasped what was going on. Her affiliation with the Winchesters had gone unquestioned in seemingly everyone's mind, but when it came down to it, he couldn't help but ask, "why are you here?"  
She had been peering into the crater almost absentmindedly when he spoke, and she didn't reply right away. Even if she had heard him clearly, she probably would have needed to stop and think anyways. The first time she had met the Winchesters hadn't she explicitly said they should never contact her again? Yet here she was. After the whole deal with the Djinn, and her mom, well, things quieted down. She had led her army to victory in Moondor, and was even crushing on this totally cute girl who worked at the GameSpot in the city... Then the angels started falling. The first thing Kevin had done was send the distress e-mail to Charlie, who had (stupidly) left Kansas as an official Woman of Letters, which apparently included making herself an emergency contact for Apocalypses. 

"I guess I owed them." Charlie finally said, choosing her words carefully. She didn't know Balthazar well at all, and he didn't seem too glad to be there - she didn't want her words to be twisted or spread. "Sam and Dean have saved my bacon a couple times now. And I've saved theirs." She added the last part quickly. It was true, after all. Those boys didn't get all the credit. "I'm kind of part of the team." Balthazar considered this for a moment. It was a fair enough reason, he supposed. The girl hadn't been dragged in... not in the simplest terms, anyways. It seemed Balthazar was still the only one displeased with being part of what the Winchesters affectionately (or could it have been ironically) called Team Free Will. With nothing more to ask, the mismatched pair circled the crater four or five times before a Balthazar picked up on a ruslting sound, about five miles off, in the tall prarie grass. The horizon was flat, so there must have been something moving close to the ground. A wild animal, most likely, but it was worth checking out. Balthazar couldn't imagine what would be said if he returned to camp with no one. He approached it slowly, ready to fight if needed, but mostly hoping to avoid contracting rabees.

The form in the grass was barely moving, it seemed most of its strength had been used up in the process of rolling over, flattening the grass around it. It being... well, she must have been seventeen years old, twenty at most. Her eyes were scrunched closed, brow furrowed as if she were in pain, and went Balthazar bent over her, and put a hand to her shoulder, she tensed even more, though she was not able to muster the strength to revolt. Using his Grace, Balthazar healed what must have been a broken arm, and give or take three rib bones. The girl moaned softly. It was only when she opened her eyes that she became recognizable. Though she was in a vessel, they could only be the eyes of Cameal shining through, the last traces of her angelhood, bright white and flecked with gold where a human's iris would be. Camael's lips parted, and she sucked in a great breath.  
Gasping for air, she scrambled to her knees, grasping frantically at the grass that surrounded her. "I can't see them!" She gasped, "I can't see them!" Her cries called over Charlie, who stumbled through the rest of the tall grass to kneel beside the girl. As Camael continued to shout, Charlie looked to Balthazar.

"Is she blind?"

"No," Balthazar said, placing his hand on Camael's shoulder, almost reassuringly. "This is Camael. She's able to see Celestial Beings, angels and the like. Sorry, was able." 

Camael's shouts dissolved into a sort of quiet heaving. "I can only assume the ties have been severed. She can no longer see them for what they are." 

"Do all angels have a special superpower?" Charlie asked.

Balthazar shook his head. "We had jobs. Some of which required special talents. But that no longer seems to be the case. Let's get her back to camp." In a flash, the three were gone, and reappeared in a cabin at Chitaqua. Balthazar took a fleeting last look at Camael before taking Charlie's arm and heading for another crater. Charlie swore she saw both grief and sympathy cross the angel's face.

*

Sam and Gabriel had similar luck, though even less to talk about. As they stumbled their way through the undergrowth of a forest in the Rockies, Gabriel's shouts of questions bounced off trees to be lost forever. What Sam did catch, he chose to ignore. "So who's Amelia?", "You didn't look for Dean at all?", and "So... Metatron's a dick, huh?" weren't exactly the conversation starters Sam was looking for.

"Hey Samsuatch, get a load of this!"

Finally, something worth listening to. When he found Gabriel, he was leaning against a tree trunk, looking at the ground. It looked like a forest fire had burnt a perfect circle in the trees, and in the centre of it, a body lay. While Sam stumbled down the slanted side of the crater, Gabriel chose to teleport to the centre, where he tapped the body with the toe of his shoe.

Sam caught up, and found his balance just in time to see the mass on the ground stir. It was a man, with a scruffy black beard and broken glasses whose fractured lenses cut into his bleeding face. Gabriel snapped his fingers to clean the man up, and looked back at Sam.

"Sam, this is Daniel. Far as I know, anyways."

"I am." Standing at full height now, Daniel was the size and built of a pro NBA player, but he spoke with the voice of a businessman. He turned to Gabriel. "Brother, you were dead."

"A lot has changed, bucko. For now, we're gonna get you somewhere safe."

"Are we in danger?"

Gabriel looked up at Sam, who shook his head slightly, making some of his hair flop into his eyes. Someone should give the kid a haircut, Gabriel thought. Some other time, though. Right now, Daniel was waiting for answers. 

"Not immediately. Brace yourself." Gabriel grabbed Daniel's arm and Sam's hand, and popped them into a cabin back at camp. "Get comfy, Dan. We'll be back with the exposition later. Sam?"

Sam, who was still trying to get his feet after the first trip, took Gabriel's extended arm gratefully. All the flashing about was taking a toll on his already weakened body. He only hoped Dean wouldn't see him like this - ghostly pale and about to faint. If Gabriel noticed, he didn't say so. Something in Sam's gut said Gabriel would help Sam along on the mission until he said he wanted out - no involuntary sidelining here. So along they went.

*

When Samandriel and Kevin returned, they found two other ex-angels sitting together in the cabin. For some reason, Kevin felt as if he were dropping off a nervous child at kindergarten. Haniel - had that been what Samandriel had called him? - was standing stock still next to the angel and the prophet, staring like a deer in the headlights at the other two newly-humans in the room.

"Go on." Samandriel prompted. He placed a hand on Haniel's back, but retracted it quickly. Haniel moved stiffly across the room, and joined the quiet conference they were holding there. Kevin looked across at Samandriel, who lowered his voice even further.

"His wings have been ripped off, I could feel the... stumps."

Kevin didn't know what to say to this, so he lowered his head. While staring at his shoes, he felt Samandriel take hold of him once more, preparing to be dragged off to their next destination.

*

Castiel found himself in the passenger seat of the Impala once more, speeding down the highway, radio still tuned to the classical station he had put on before. Dean was silent, but Cas could tell there was something wrong. Dean's knuckles were white from gripping the steering wheel a little too tightly.

"Why does that place bother you so much?" Cas finally asked.

Dean looked away from the road to give Cas a confused stare. "What place?"

"The camp. You... kept looking around. As if something wasn't right there."

Cas had caught on pretty quickly, Dean had to give him credit. Credit in the form of honesty, he supposed.

"Remember when Zachariah dumped me in the future?"

Cas nodded.

"Well that's where I - future me - was. Camp Chitaqua, surrounded by helpless human refugees from the Croatoan war raging on outside."

"Lucifer is in the Cage, Dean. That future was destroyed." Cas said firmly, in the most reassuring tone he could muster. Dean sighed. He hated to be contrary, but it was eating away at him. "Yeah, but..." He stopped for a moment, thinking twice about saddling Cas with his worries. "You're human, which was part of that story. And those refugees? I'm starting to think they just might have been fallen angels."

"That future was destroyed." Cas said again, but this time to himself more than Dean. Unfortunately, it was true, what Dean was saying. And if they kept bringing in the angels, they would only be making it more and more similar to the future.

And it would be Castiel's fault.

Again.

With nothing more to add, and an encroaching sense of guilt, Castiel reached for the volume knob, and turned up the music. The cello hardly rattled the windows, but it was enough to let Dean know he didn't want to talk anymore. That just worried Dean further. They drove another fifty miles before Castiel couldn't take Dean's aura of anxiety anymore, and turned off the music.

"Why did you take me with you? I'm not an angel anymore, Dean. I'm hardly of any use."

"You're of use if I say you are." Dean said. There was a tone of finality in his voice.

"But-"

"Look, Cas. I get that this sucks, but you can't spend all this time wallowing in self hatred. Trust me, man, I've tried. It doesn't work. You've gotta pick yourself up, work with what you got, and kick this thing in the ass." Cas almost thought to protest again, but thought better of it. "I get you're hurting. You're scared and that's fine. But I'm here to help you get through it, so work with me, Cas."

"You really do believe we can stop Metatron?"

"I believe we've got a snowball's chance, and that's all we need. With these angels on our side, we're a match for him. All we gotta do is get to Zachariah, and we're golden."  
"Do you think he can help us?"

"I wish he couldn't, but he knows heaven better than anyone. Hell, he chased me and Sam through it. So we'll see what he can do for us, once we regroup tomorrow."

Cas paused thoughtfully. He looked out the window toward the darkening sky and he said in such a low voice that it cracked, "I'm sorry."

"Don't be. If Gabriel hadn't shown up, we'd be on angel round-up anyways. You got us back on track, really."

"I thought you-" but whatever it was Cas thought about Dean, it would have to wait. In the distance, just beyond the horizon, there was a great flash of light.

"Zachariah?" Dean asked, hitting the gas.

"Most likely." Cas agreed. It felt strange to be on the other end of the connection, but in that moment, Cas was sending out a prayer. More like a shout, really. 'Gabriel, it seems we have a situation on our hands. We need a faster ride than this.'

In a flash of light, Dean felt himself being ripped from the drivers' seat, thrown to his feet, and subsequently pulled to his feet by Cas, who he could see illuminated perfectly against the light Zachariah was giving off.

Gabriel was standing behind them, angel blade drawn at the ready, and shortly afterwards, Dean found that Sam and Balthazar were flanking him.

"Cockroaches." Zachariah turned to them, as if welcoming a group of old friends fondly. But his smile was twisted. The bottom of his jaw was still gaping open, where Dean had shoved the angel blade through him the last time they had met, and Dean could only think there would be a matching exit hole on the back of Zachariah's sick, bald head.

"Come back to see the Apocalypse rebooted?" Zachariah grinned gleefully, holding up something glittering in the light.

Gabriel's jaw nearly dropped. "Only the archangels were supposed to know about the key!" He moved forward to grab at it, but Dean put his arm out to hold him back. They needed to stay in whatever good graces they could scrape together.

"We're here to make an offer, Zachariah. But if things go south, killing you isn't out of the cards."

"Again, Dean? Really? I'll save you the trouble of making your offer, and we'll jump straight to the grand finale, how about that?"

"Put down the rings, Zachariah." Cas said dangerously.

"All bark and no bite, aren't you, Cas? These boys have got you so well trained you reek of..." Zachariah's eyes grew wide at the realization as he spat out the last word as a question, "human?"

The pause was just enough time for Sam to pull out a gun. Zachariah saw it though, glinting in what Sam thought must have been artificial sunlight. Zachariah clucked his tongue and shook his finger. "I wouldn't do that, Sam. It would only serve to make me... angrier."

In a second, Cas was on the ground, in what looked to be immense pain. Dean looked from Cas to Zachariah and didn't waste a moment in shouting, "what do you want, you son of a bitch?"

"I'll take you up to Heaven, help you find Metatron. IF-" He tweaked his finger and Cas writhed in pain "-you allow me to complete my job."

"You're going to help us save the world... so you can let Micheal and Lucifer destroy it?" Dean wasn't the only one having trouble seeing the sense of the request, but it was Gabriel who had the most intense reaction. In a matter of seconds, he was holding Zachariah from behind, angel blade held across his neck, cutting into it just deep enough to draw blood.

"Listen up, dickwad. You're either gonna help us get into Heaven or not. Either way, I kill you. There will be no Apocalypse."

Zachariah choked, "yes... there... will."

Gabriel drove the blade deeper into his neck. A white wisp of Grace drifted into the open air. "If you want to prolong your miserable existence much longer, you'll tell us where Metatron is holed up. If not, well, I can have it arranged for you to go... painfully." There was a darkness in Gabriel's eyes that Sam had never seen before. Then again, he could understand the complete lack of desire for the Apocalypse from him. It had been the reason he left heaven in the first place, after all. 

The stand-off felt as if it lasted years, but when Zachariah finally spoke, it had only been ten minutes.

"I'll show you where to go." He said. His voice was filled with defeat, but despite the seemingly resigned tone, Dean couldn't help but worry. If anyone was going to make his nightmares come back, it was Zachariah. But he was all they had. If they played it safe, no funny business, Dean thought... maybe, just maybe they could get through this mess.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everyone needed a little time to kind of get away from the group, so I decided to split them into pairs. Charlie and Balthazar... that was a strange one to write, to say the least.
> 
> Also, just for the sake of knowledge, Camael's vessel is named Astrid Lee, and she's 19. Camael translates to "One Who Sees God", hence the blindness.
> 
> Daniel's vessel is Thomas Jackson, 43. I kind of imagined him as J August Richards. 
> 
> Haniel's vessel is Mark Pearson, 26. He was deafened by a grenade that exploded while he was on tour in Afghanistan. Haniel still wears his vessel's uniform and hearing aids.


End file.
